In the commercial/institutional plumbing industry, there are a number of problems associated with typical water closet and urinal installations in commercial buildings.
A water closet or urinal installation will typically require a time-consuming and complicated manual installation. In particular, the installation of concealed plumbing fixtures that have mechanical buttons, handles, electronics, pipes and wires requires that each of these components must be precisely located and routed through walls with the result that the installation work is time-consuming and expensive.
For example, the installation of concealed flush valves using mechanical buttons or handles requires that the alignment of the mechanical linkage and the distance from the valve to the front of the exposed wall is precise with the result that many errors are made installing these devices. Furthermore, electronics must be located at specific locations relative to the fixture.
Moreover, mistakes made during installation that require post-installation repairs or repairs required due to vandalism or component failure are often difficult and expensive to effect as finished walls, floors and countertop surfaces may have to be removed, dismantled or replaced in order to gain access to and ultimately fix the problem.
Another problem with standard exposed commercial plumbing installations is that, in the case of a water closet, most mechanical and electronic actuators are located behind the water closet fixture. This arrangement of components requires that the user must reach over the water closet in order to flush the fixture which is unpleasant.
Accordingly, there remains a need to provide a system and method for improving plumbing installations that address the above shortcomings. More particularly, there remains a need for a plumbing fixture control system that can be easily and quickly installed without the need for complex routing of electronics or wiring through walls. Moreover, there is a need for plumbing systems that can be more easily repaired in the event of component failure or damage.